Box-car door



Aug. 14, 1923.

M. H. HUBNER BOX CAR DOOR Filed July 1, 1922 Patented Aug. 14, 1923.

l tes FATfEhiT MILTON H. BURNER, or srocrrron, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNGE or one-trans 'ro VJ. HUBNER, OF STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA.

:eoxcrm noon.

Application filed my 1,

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MIL'roN T l. HUBNER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Stockton, county of San Joaquin, State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Box-Car Doors; and T do declare the folloiving to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to tie characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part'of this application.

This invention relates to improvements in doors and particularly to the sliding type of door commonly used on railroad box cars and the like.

As such doors are now arranged in connection with the track means on which they slide, the doors when open are very apt to bind against the side of the car, especially when the latter is warped by age and hard usage, necessitating the use of considerable force to then move the door either way so that very often the loading or train crew will apply a crowbar or similar implement to move the door, which of course tends to strain the door and car, and is apt to splinter the adjacent woodwork.

The principal object of my invention therefore is to avoid the above defects of construction and operation by providing track means for the support of the door so arranged that while the door has a close fit with the side walls surrounding the door opening when the latter is covered by the door, when the latter is moved away from the opening it will also move away from the car walls, so that there is never any danger of the door sticking due to undue proximity to the car.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purposes for which it is designed.

These objects I accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings similar characters of ref erence indicate corresponding parts in the several views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective View of the door and its track means, mounted on a car, the door being partly open.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary cross 3 is a similar view with the door a door-opening 2, to be covered by a door 3 of standard construction.

Extending longitudinally of the car, above the opening 2 and therebeyond a similar distance at one end, is a rigid beam 4t, fixed to the car. the upper face of which beam has a pair of longitudinally disposed and symmetrically shaped traclngrooves 5 the length of each one of which is substantially the same as the width of the opening 2 and door For a short distance from one end each groove is located near the inner edge of the beam 4, as at A, while for the remainder of its extent, the groove is located near the outer edge of the beam. as at B, the two transversely offset groove portions being joined by a curve C.

The innermost portions A. of the grooves are located at corresponding ends thereof, so that one such portion is adjacent one end of the opening 2, and the other one at the other end of said opening.

Pivoted in hangers or hearing members 6 projecting upwardly from the door and overhanging the beam 4 are rollers 7 which ride in the grooves 5, the rollers being spaced apart a distance equal to the length of each groove, so that both rollers will ride in cor responding portions of the grooves at the same time.

,Brackets 8 project outwardly from the car below the door and in the path of movement thereof, these brackets being arranged to serve as means for preventing the door from swinging outwardly at its lower end.

The operation of the structure is thought to be obvious. When the door is closed. the rollers 7 are riding in the inner portions A of the grooves the door is then close against the side walls of the car, and will abut against an upright 9 placed at the end of the opening opposite to the direction of opening movement of the door. Suitable fastening means between the door and upright are of course preferably provided. When the door is shoved away from the upright to uncover the opening as soon as the rollers move out into the outer portion B of the grooves, the door likewise moves away from the sides of the car, so that even if the latter are bulged or Warped outwardly is frequently the case, they will not con tact with the door and tend to cause a sticking; thereof.

It is also obvious that if desired the track means may be duplicated at the bottom of the door and opening.

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that I have produced such device as substantially fulfills the objects of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention, as defined by the appended claims. I

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new and useful and desire to sccure by Letters Patent, is

1. A door supporting structure for freight cars comprising a horizontal beam adapted to be mounted on a car above the door opening and to extend therebeyond at one end, and track means on the beam from end to end and separated contrally of the length of the beam to form two independent tracks; the corresponding end of each track lying adjacent the inner face of the beam and in common alinement with each other while the major lengths of the tracks liein common alinement adjacent the outer face of the beam, the inner and outer portions of each t 'ack being connected by a portion extending at an angle to the faces of the beam; said tracks being adapted to support rollers mounted on the door.

2. A door supporting structure for freight cars comprising a horizontal beam adapted to be mounted on a car above the door opening and to extend therebeyond at one end, and a pair of longitudinally separated track grooves in the beam each substantially half the length thereof; the corresponding end of each groove lying acent the inner face of the beam while the major length of each groove lies adjacent the outer face of the beam and is connected to its end portion by a groove portion set at an angle to the faces of the beam; the ends of the grooves being blind; said grooves being adapted to receive rollers mounted on the door.

In testimony whereof I afiix n y signature.

MILTON n. HUBNEB. 

